Suh Jin-won named new Shinhan CEO

By Kim Jae-kyoung

Suh Jin-won, CEO of Shinhan Life, was named as new president and CEO of Shinhan Bank to replace outgoing CEO Lee Baek-soon, according to Shinhan Financial Group, Thursday.

The appointment came a day after the outgoing Lee offered to resign Wednesday following the prosecution’s decision to indict Lee and former Shinhan CEO Shin Sang-hoon on embezzlement charges.

The group said that it nominated Suh as new CEO at a subsidiary management committee meeting Thursday morning and the bank’s board of directors approved the nomination later in the day. The 59-year-old is expected to take the helm of the lender, the flagship of the nation’s third largest financial group, until the shareholders’ meeting in March 2012.

“The committee appointed Suh as he is believed to have management capabilities and leadership to ensure that the group will regain organizational unity and stabilize the group as soon as possible,” a Shinhan official said.

A graduate of Korea University, Suh started his banking career at Seoul Trust Bank in 1977 and moved to Shinhan Bank in 1983. Previously, he had stints at a number of key posts, including the head of the HR development team, chief of personnel department, director of the retail customer division and chief strategy officer of the group. In 2007, he was named to lead Shinhan Life, and was reappointed in June.

“The appointment of the new bank CEO signals that the internal strife at Shinhan has been finally wrapped up. The new leader will focus on settling the internal dispute and stabilizing the group as early as possible,” the official said.

In the meantime, the group appointed Gweon Jum-joo, vice president of Shinhan Bank, as CEO of Shinhan Life, while Shinhan BNP Paribas Asset Management CEO Choi Bang-gil was reappointed. It also named Shinhan Bank Vice President Kim Hyung-jin as CEO of Shinhan Data System.